


Drabble Prompt: Harsh Childhood Lesson

by altmeris



Series: TESV: Skyrim stories [6]
Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Gen, General fiction, Literature, fan fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-19
Updated: 2016-02-19
Packaged: 2018-10-24 05:46:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10735371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/altmeris/pseuds/altmeris
Summary: A young Torenn loses her dog and has the false notion that he can be brought back to life.





	Drabble Prompt: Harsh Childhood Lesson

The seven-year old halfling wept over the large dog lying in the grass, holding his head in her lap.

The dog’s breath came shallow, ragged, and laboured. Blood oozed from multiple wounds, staining his black and brown fur deep scarlet. He had done what he had meant to do: kept the mountain lion away from Torenn, whom it had tried to attack, in time for Aurelius to arrive and slay it. But he had been mortally wounded in the fight.

“Ruffy,” sobbed Torenn, “Ruffy…”

The dog looked up at the girl he had sacrificed himself for, pain in his brown eyes. He whimpered, but wagged his tail a little as if comforted by her presence. After a few moments, his eyes closed slowly, and his body went utterly still.

“Ruffy!” Torenn cried again, “Wake up Ruffy!”

“He can’t wake up, Torenn,” Aurelius said softly, kneeling beside his daughter and his fallen dog.

“Can’t you fix him, papa?” Torenn asked.

“No, I can’t. It’s too late. I can’t do anything for him. Ruffy’s gone.” Aurelius put his hand gently on her shoulder.

“But you have magic!” the child insisted.

“Magic can’t fix everything,” Aurelius said gravely. “It can’t bring Ruffy back. No magic can bring the dead back to life.”

Torenn shook her head. “Yes it can! I read it in a book!”

Aurelius froze, his golden eyes widening. Without meaning to, his grip tightened on his daughter’s shoulder. “No,” he said, his voice very stern, “It won’t. What book were you reading?”

“I don’t know,” Torenn said, sounding frightened, “It was at Claudette’s house…”

“That is very bad magic,” Aurelius said shortly. He got to his feet. “Get up, Torenn.”

“But, Ruffy-!”

“I’ll carry him home so we can bury him. Get up, Torenn.”

This time, Torenn obeyed him. Aurelius took off his coat, covered the large dog, and cast some sort of spell. He then picked up the bundle as if it was as light as a pillow.

Torenn followed along behind him as he set off, tears rolling down her cheeks.

***

The family had a small funeral for Ruffy, in which Torenn and both her siblings cried most of the way through. Even their mother Juliana shed a few tears. Aurelius did not cry, but his hands shook as he lowered the beloved dog into the grave he had dug.

Torenn was not punished for reading whatever book it was that her father had so disapproved of (besides not being allowed to play with Claudette until further notice), and she forgot the incident entirely, her mind instead consumed with grief from Ruffy’s death. One evening a few days later, however, her father approached her.

“Torenn, I want to talk to you,” he said seriously. “About magic.”

“Magic?” Torenn asked.

“Yes. You have a talent for magic like your papa. Most people can learn how to do magic, but you might be very good at it.”

“Really?” Torenn’s blue eyes went very wide.

“Yes, really. But there are different kinds of magic. Some are good, and some are bad. The magic I use to make light when it’s too dark is good magic. Magic like that helps people. But some magic is very bad. That book you read at Claudette’s house had some bad magic in it. When you said there was magic that can bring Ruffy back, you were talking about bad magic. It wouldn’t actually bring him back. It would just turn his body into a zombie.”

Torenn blanched. “A zombie?!” Torenn was scared of zombies. Zombies were monsters that ate little girls!

“That magic is called necromancy. It controls zombies and skeletons. It’s evil, and I don’t ever want you to try doing it. Understand?”

“I won’t, papa,” Torenn said truthfully. She didn’t ever want to see skeletons and zombies.

“Good girl. Necromancers are bad mages.”

“Do good mages stop bad mages?” asked Torenn.

“When they can,” replied Aurelius. “The greatest mage there ever was fought necromancers a long, long time ago.”

“I thought you were the greatest mage ever, papa,” said Torenn.

Aurelius smiled a little but shook his head. “He was even better at magic than your papa. His name was Vanus Galerion. He started the Mage’s Guild and fought Mannimarco, one of the most evil mages ever.”

Torenn thought for a moment. The name was familiar. Then, “Don’t we have a book called Mannimarco?”

“Yes, but it’s a scary book and hard to read.”

“Then can you read it to me?”

“It’s a very scary book, Torenn. You’re too young.”

“But papa-”

“No, Torenn.” And that was Aurelius’s final word on the matter.

But Torenn was determined. Sometime, when her father was at work and her mother was tending to her young brother, she, Torenn, would find a way to climb the bookshelf and get that book. Scared as she was, she was determined to find out more about the most evil mage that ever lived.


End file.
